Staring Game
Hey all! First Langford U fiction, so I hope you enjoy it. If some of it is familiar to anyone, I used dialog and some situations from another fic because I thought it might fit in nicely. But it’s up to you to say if I am a idiot :)
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Staring Game
Pairings: Sheppard/Weir
Rating: PG… just in case
Summary: John tries to relax Elizabeth with a game of checkers but it isn’t the only game that’s being played.
“Oh for…!” he almost cursed as he rummaged through one of the desk drawers in his office. Papers. Too many papers. Not to mention folders! Sighing in exasperation, John pulled the drawer out of the desk and frantically emptied the contents onto his already messy table. He moved his hands around the mess. He was about to give up when his right hand touched a hard familiar object and John grew hopeful. He held onto the object and pulled it out of the chaos. “Aha!” he declared as he observed the folded object. It was a travel magnetic checkers set that had red and black squares. The board was folded into half and locked into place. He shook it to ensure that there were pieces inside and was rewarded by the sound of rustling. He opened it and quickly checked for any missing pieces - there were none. So, with a smirk, John headed out of his office ensuring that he locked it before he had any intruders.
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John walked into the reception area to Elizabeth’s office where Peter greeted him as usual. Grodin looked up from his work and did a double take.
“What happened to you?” the secretary asked before John could reach Elizabeth’s office door.
John stopped in his tracks in front of Peter’s desk. “What?” The mathematician was puzzled.
Peter dropped his pen, “Have you looked in a mirror?” he asked while folding his arms and leaning back into his chair.
“No. I…” John stopped when he saw Peter’s left eyebrow rise in question.
John then looked down at himself and saw his state. His black tie was twisted to the left, the right side of his blue shirt was out of his black pants and it was then that he realised what Peter was talking about. He was certain that his hair was in chaos, more than usual. Essentially, John was a mess, possibly brought on by the search he conducted in his office. He quickly made a mental note to clean it up before one of Elizabeth’s unexpected drop-ins where for sure he wouldn’t hear the last of it.
Playfully groaning in frustration, he tucked in his shirt but left the tie just the way it was. He smirked at Peter and headed towards Elizabeth’s door.
“Be careful,” Peter warned and John turned his body to him, his left hand on the handle.
“And why is that?”
“She just got out of a meeting with Kinsey and she’s not too happy. Plus, she doesn’t want to talk about it. So, expect grouchiness.”
John got a mental image of ‘Oscar the Grouch’ and he smiled at the fun to be had with it. With a nod to Peter, he then knocked on Elizabeth’s door and waited for her reply. Normally he would just go in but he decided to be cautious.
“Yes?!” came the irritated reply from inside and he heard Peter chuckle. John turned to glare at the secretary, who happily continued on the paper in front him.
Sheppard returned to facing the door and took a deep breath before turning the handle.
“Good luck,” Peter said behind him and John rolled his eyes, also sensing that Grodin was smirking.
Slowly pushing the door open, he edged his way in. “Oh, Elizabeeeth!” he cooed to himself. When he got a view of her desk John quickly flung the door open and closed it.
“What the hell happened?” he asked incredulously as he surveyed her desk and around it. Elizabeth’s desk was just as messy as his. There were folders and papers all over the desk with some littering the floor around it. He observed Elizabeth and couldn’t help but chuckle. She had her hands on her hips; her hair was a little untidy and she had a pissed off expression on her face, which to him, looked kind of hot. She was staring at her desk as if it was an enemy. She didn’t even acknowledge his presence.
John took cautious steps forward. “What’s up, Doc?” he tried again, still no reply. “Oscar!” he shouted and it made her jerk in shock. She quickly raised her head and glared at John. Being the focus of that glare made him a little nervous. 'Oh, boy'.
“What?” she simply asked, her features softening after seeing him.
“What happened?” John asked while picking up the folders on the floor.
Elizabeth shrugged. “I-I… couldn’t find my pen.”
John bolted up from the ground and stared at her in disbelief. “You couldn’t find your pen?” he asked incredulously thinking about the disorder around him but she didn’t answer. “Why didn’t you ask Peter for one?” he continued and she again looked at him but this time with a little humiliation on her face. It was priceless.
“Stupid!” John heard her mutter when he looked down at the mess again.
He opted to ignore it and reached into his left pants pocket. He pulled out the folded board and showed it to her.
“Take a break?” he suggested, “Have a game of checkers? I’ll help you clean up.” He used his puppy dog look.
Elizabeth fought back accepting the offer while staring at the look that always, always, for some reason made her… accept. She watched him sway the damn thing in his hand still trying to coax her, a smile slowly growing on his lips because he knew, he knew, that she was about to give in. She looked at the mess on her table that she caused. ‘Tornado-Weir’, she mentally joked to herself. A break could do her good and it would take her mind off that smarmy, pompous Kinsey. She looked at John and smiled which indicated to him that she would have a game.
“Good!” John beamed and motioned her to the large couch near the door. They sat on opposite ends, Elizabeth on the left and John on the right.
“Sorry for the mess but as I said….” Elizabeth started her apology.
“You were searching for your pen,” John finished with amusement in his voice.
“Yes,” she silently chuckled.
“It’s fine. I’m not a Monica …” he joked as he set the board between them. Elizabeth looked at him confused and John noticed it, “Not important…Red or Black?” He held up a red piece in his left hand and a black piece in his right hand.
“Hmm…” Elizabeth looked between the two.
“You wanna flip for it?”
“No… Red.”
“I figured as much,” he chuckled looking at her red shirt but she didn’t notice, “Good. Let’s play,” He then set up the positions on the board. “Ladies first.”
After a few minutes of play, both sides lost an equal amount of pieces. It was taking them longer to decide their moves because both were setting traps for each other. It was Elizabeth’s move next and John lost another piece. She moved again and then it was John’s turn. If he didn’t move strategically, one of his pieces could belong to Elizabeth.
“Hmm…” he sighed.
Elizabeth crossed her legs, left leg over right, placed her right elbow on her knee and then blocked her mouth with her right fist. She had a faint smile behind it while staring playfully at John. He noticed the stare and gave her uneasy looks during his decision. She wasn’t even blinking. Elizabeth occasionally looked at his hair and his faint nervous smile. She couldn’t stop herself from thinking that he looked cute. His hair was sticking out everywhere, worse than when she saw him earlier in the day. His tie was crooked and it irritated her that she wanted to reach out and fix it. She felt like she had him trapped and he had nowhere to go. At the same time, Elizabeth was also having stimulating thoughts of John in that particular situation. Looking at him, she couldn’t help herself. Then, John made his move successfully and Elizabeth didn’t win any of his pieces. It was her move next and she would take a while.
John decided to use her tactic against her. He folded his arms and stared at her with mischief plastered all over his face. She occasionally glanced at him and smiled nervously and John replied with a faint smirk and a glint in his eye. He looked at her licking and biting her lips while she was deciding her next move. However, John took it a step further and slowly moved his head towards her. He wanted to get her back by psyching her out.
Slowly he moved closer and closer to her and Elizabeth noticed and became very uncomfortable. His eyes still fixed on hers, his nose in line with hers and he was approaching as if he was going to kiss her. She cleared her throat and scratched her head, embarrassed. John got so close to her, inches away, that she stopped thinking and moved her head back, which surprised John slightly.
“That’s it. I give up. You win,” she surrendered.
John sat back on his side of the couch with a triumphant smile. “What?” he then feigned confusion.
“You’re distracting me!” she laughed nervously.
“I’m distracting you? What was that staring all about then?” he asked incredulously while showing a mischievous grin.
“What staring?” she boldly asked while folding her arms.
“You were staring while I was making my move. Don’t think I didn’t notice…" He paused. "Did I have something hanging from my nose?” John proceeded to check his nose for any unpleasant stuff.
She didn’t reply but just looked at him nervously as if John found out some secret. She was staring at him because she couldn’t resist it. He looked at her and let out a charming laugh.
“What?” she asked and sounding hurt.
“It’s nothing.”
“Well then, why were you staring? For that matter, what was with the approach?” she retorted.
“Well…payback for your gazing.”
“I wasn’t ga…” Elizabeth couldn’t take any more of John’s wit, she already had enough incompetence for the day, “Go…” she looked at him intensely and got up but not before finishing, “…comb your hair!”
She walked to her desk frustrated and placed her hands on her hips with her back facing him. John replied with a laugh and Elizabeth turned to him. After a moment, she then realised what she had just said and slowly, but surely she opened up and laughed softly with him. It was a stupid remark, one born out of frustration. John then looked at his watch.
“Well, I guess that’s my cue to leave. Class in five minutes,” he informed her.
“I’m still holding you to that offer of help to clean my office,” she said with a smirk.
“Yeah! Don’t wanna miss that (!)” he smiled and she replied with one of her own.
John packed his checkers board and headed for the door. “We should do this again. God knows you need some fun after those meetings.”
“Yes. I would like that,” she replied affectionately.
“Oh, next time, how’s bout I bring a pack of cards?” he offered with a smirk that made Elizabeth think.
“I am not playing Strip Poker.”
“Hey I wasn’t gonna suggest that!” he defended himself but still smirked at the thought, “There are…” he stopped to count mentally but in the end couldn’t be bothered, “…several games you can play. How else are you gonna pass the time?” he smiled and both of them gazed into each other’s eyes.
John, reluctantly, had to stop this because 1) Peter could see everything and he wouldn’t hear the last of it. Grodin had already made that comment one time “Only Dinner?” when he had to do Elizabeth’s taxes and also not forgetting the faculty auction, 2) well, he couldn’t think about a ‘2’ because part of him wanted to go back in but he had to get to class. Oh, yeah… 2) Class, he thought while trying to distract himself.
“John?” Elizabeth’s voice broke him away from his thoughts.
There was a delayed reaction as he thought of a cover. “Oh! I’ll bring cheesecake and come by about four o’ clock to help clean up.”
“You better,” she pointed at him and smiled.
John smirked, closed the door and headed out.
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Elizabeth chuckled at the closed door and then turned to survey her office. She knew that she had work to do but it was something that could wait until her office was cleared up. She sighed contently, due to the visit from John, and then walked to couch. She sat down and leaned her head back on the headrest while closing her eyes and letting herself take in the peace.
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“Don’t think I didn’t see that,” he heard Peter behind him but John continued walking towards the door.
“Kiss my ass,” Doc. Shep said loud enough for Grodin to hear and John heard the dependable secretary chuckle.
When John was in the hallway, he noticed Paul Davis walking towards to him from the left. He groaned when he saw the smirk on Paul’s face and he was beginning to think that Paul Davis, public relations, was stalking him. I wonder if he’s part of the Rumour Mill.
“Paul…” Sheppard nodded to the man as he passed.
“Doctor,” Davis nodded back and entered Doctor Weir’s office. “Ah, Peter! How’s it going?” John heard the joyful greeting from Davis before the door closed.
Sheppard then remembered something. He quickly opened the door and ducked his head in. “Oh, Grodin. Oscar needs a pen.”
Simultaneously, Grodin looked up and Davis’ head turned to face John. Sheppard saw the bemused face on Grodin and he used his head and eyes to indicated Elizabeth’s door. Peter looked at her door and then back again to Sheppard finally with realisation on his face. He nodded in understanding and John closed the door.
“Crap!” John muttered as he realised he hadn’t gotten the work sheets for his class. He bolted to his office door reluctant to face what was in his office.
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Elizabeth heard a knock and then the sound of the door opening. She turned her head to the left and peeked through her left eye. She saw Paul Davis scanning her office and then finally spotting her. On seeing her, he smiled apologetically.
Or not, she mentally groaned.
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Staring Game
Pairings: Sheppard/Weir
Rating: PG… just in case
Summary: John tries to relax Elizabeth with a game of checkers but it isn’t the only game that’s being played.
“Oh for…!” he almost cursed as he rummaged through one of the desk drawers in his office. Papers. Too many papers. Not to mention folders! Sighing in exasperation, John pulled the drawer out of the desk and frantically emptied the contents onto his already messy table. He moved his hands around the mess. He was about to give up when his right hand touched a hard familiar object and John grew hopeful. He held onto the object and pulled it out of the chaos. “Aha!” he declared as he observed the folded object. It was a travel magnetic checkers set that had red and black squares. The board was folded into half and locked into place. He shook it to ensure that there were pieces inside and was rewarded by the sound of rustling. He opened it and quickly checked for any missing pieces - there were none. So, with a smirk, John headed out of his office ensuring that he locked it before he had any intruders.
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John walked into the reception area to Elizabeth’s office where Peter greeted him as usual. Grodin looked up from his work and did a double take.
“What happened to you?” the secretary asked before John could reach Elizabeth’s office door.
John stopped in his tracks in front of Peter’s desk. “What?” The mathematician was puzzled.
Peter dropped his pen, “Have you looked in a mirror?” he asked while folding his arms and leaning back into his chair.
“No. I…” John stopped when he saw Peter’s left eyebrow rise in question.
John then looked down at himself and saw his state. His black tie was twisted to the left, the right side of his blue shirt was out of his black pants and it was then that he realised what Peter was talking about. He was certain that his hair was in chaos, more than usual. Essentially, John was a mess, possibly brought on by the search he conducted in his office. He quickly made a mental note to clean it up before one of Elizabeth’s unexpected drop-ins where for sure he wouldn’t hear the last of it.
Playfully groaning in frustration, he tucked in his shirt but left the tie just the way it was. He smirked at Peter and headed towards Elizabeth’s door.
“Be careful,” Peter warned and John turned his body to him, his left hand on the handle.
“And why is that?”
“She just got out of a meeting with Kinsey and she’s not too happy. Plus, she doesn’t want to talk about it. So, expect grouchiness.”
John got a mental image of ‘Oscar the Grouch’ and he smiled at the fun to be had with it. With a nod to Peter, he then knocked on Elizabeth’s door and waited for her reply. Normally he would just go in but he decided to be cautious.
“Yes?!” came the irritated reply from inside and he heard Peter chuckle. John turned to glare at the secretary, who happily continued on the paper in front him.
Sheppard returned to facing the door and took a deep breath before turning the handle.
“Good luck,” Peter said behind him and John rolled his eyes, also sensing that Grodin was smirking.
Slowly pushing the door open, he edged his way in. “Oh, Elizabeeeth!” he cooed to himself. When he got a view of her desk John quickly flung the door open and closed it.
“What the hell happened?” he asked incredulously as he surveyed her desk and around it. Elizabeth’s desk was just as messy as his. There were folders and papers all over the desk with some littering the floor around it. He observed Elizabeth and couldn’t help but chuckle. She had her hands on her hips; her hair was a little untidy and she had a pissed off expression on her face, which to him, looked kind of hot. She was staring at her desk as if it was an enemy. She didn’t even acknowledge his presence.
John took cautious steps forward. “What’s up, Doc?” he tried again, still no reply. “Oscar!” he shouted and it made her jerk in shock. She quickly raised her head and glared at John. Being the focus of that glare made him a little nervous. 'Oh, boy'.
“What?” she simply asked, her features softening after seeing him.
“What happened?” John asked while picking up the folders on the floor.
Elizabeth shrugged. “I-I… couldn’t find my pen.”
John bolted up from the ground and stared at her in disbelief. “You couldn’t find your pen?” he asked incredulously thinking about the disorder around him but she didn’t answer. “Why didn’t you ask Peter for one?” he continued and she again looked at him but this time with a little humiliation on her face. It was priceless.
“Stupid!” John heard her mutter when he looked down at the mess again.
He opted to ignore it and reached into his left pants pocket. He pulled out the folded board and showed it to her.
“Take a break?” he suggested, “Have a game of checkers? I’ll help you clean up.” He used his puppy dog look.
Elizabeth fought back accepting the offer while staring at the look that always, always, for some reason made her… accept. She watched him sway the damn thing in his hand still trying to coax her, a smile slowly growing on his lips because he knew, he knew, that she was about to give in. She looked at the mess on her table that she caused. ‘Tornado-Weir’, she mentally joked to herself. A break could do her good and it would take her mind off that smarmy, pompous Kinsey. She looked at John and smiled which indicated to him that she would have a game.
“Good!” John beamed and motioned her to the large couch near the door. They sat on opposite ends, Elizabeth on the left and John on the right.
“Sorry for the mess but as I said….” Elizabeth started her apology.
“You were searching for your pen,” John finished with amusement in his voice.
“Yes,” she silently chuckled.
“It’s fine. I’m not a Monica …” he joked as he set the board between them. Elizabeth looked at him confused and John noticed it, “Not important…Red or Black?” He held up a red piece in his left hand and a black piece in his right hand.
“Hmm…” Elizabeth looked between the two.
“You wanna flip for it?”
“No… Red.”
“I figured as much,” he chuckled looking at her red shirt but she didn’t notice, “Good. Let’s play,” He then set up the positions on the board. “Ladies first.”
After a few minutes of play, both sides lost an equal amount of pieces. It was taking them longer to decide their moves because both were setting traps for each other. It was Elizabeth’s move next and John lost another piece. She moved again and then it was John’s turn. If he didn’t move strategically, one of his pieces could belong to Elizabeth.
“Hmm…” he sighed.
Elizabeth crossed her legs, left leg over right, placed her right elbow on her knee and then blocked her mouth with her right fist. She had a faint smile behind it while staring playfully at John. He noticed the stare and gave her uneasy looks during his decision. She wasn’t even blinking. Elizabeth occasionally looked at his hair and his faint nervous smile. She couldn’t stop herself from thinking that he looked cute. His hair was sticking out everywhere, worse than when she saw him earlier in the day. His tie was crooked and it irritated her that she wanted to reach out and fix it. She felt like she had him trapped and he had nowhere to go. At the same time, Elizabeth was also having stimulating thoughts of John in that particular situation. Looking at him, she couldn’t help herself. Then, John made his move successfully and Elizabeth didn’t win any of his pieces. It was her move next and she would take a while.
John decided to use her tactic against her. He folded his arms and stared at her with mischief plastered all over his face. She occasionally glanced at him and smiled nervously and John replied with a faint smirk and a glint in his eye. He looked at her licking and biting her lips while she was deciding her next move. However, John took it a step further and slowly moved his head towards her. He wanted to get her back by psyching her out.
Slowly he moved closer and closer to her and Elizabeth noticed and became very uncomfortable. His eyes still fixed on hers, his nose in line with hers and he was approaching as if he was going to kiss her. She cleared her throat and scratched her head, embarrassed. John got so close to her, inches away, that she stopped thinking and moved her head back, which surprised John slightly.
“That’s it. I give up. You win,” she surrendered.
John sat back on his side of the couch with a triumphant smile. “What?” he then feigned confusion.
“You’re distracting me!” she laughed nervously.
“I’m distracting you? What was that staring all about then?” he asked incredulously while showing a mischievous grin.
“What staring?” she boldly asked while folding her arms.
“You were staring while I was making my move. Don’t think I didn’t notice…" He paused. "Did I have something hanging from my nose?” John proceeded to check his nose for any unpleasant stuff.
She didn’t reply but just looked at him nervously as if John found out some secret. She was staring at him because she couldn’t resist it. He looked at her and let out a charming laugh.
“What?” she asked and sounding hurt.
“It’s nothing.”
“Well then, why were you staring? For that matter, what was with the approach?” she retorted.
“Well…payback for your gazing.”
“I wasn’t ga…” Elizabeth couldn’t take any more of John’s wit, she already had enough incompetence for the day, “Go…” she looked at him intensely and got up but not before finishing, “…comb your hair!”
She walked to her desk frustrated and placed her hands on her hips with her back facing him. John replied with a laugh and Elizabeth turned to him. After a moment, she then realised what she had just said and slowly, but surely she opened up and laughed softly with him. It was a stupid remark, one born out of frustration. John then looked at his watch.
“Well, I guess that’s my cue to leave. Class in five minutes,” he informed her.
“I’m still holding you to that offer of help to clean my office,” she said with a smirk.
“Yeah! Don’t wanna miss that (!)” he smiled and she replied with one of her own.
John packed his checkers board and headed for the door. “We should do this again. God knows you need some fun after those meetings.”
“Yes. I would like that,” she replied affectionately.
“Oh, next time, how’s bout I bring a pack of cards?” he offered with a smirk that made Elizabeth think.
“I am not playing Strip Poker.”
“Hey I wasn’t gonna suggest that!” he defended himself but still smirked at the thought, “There are…” he stopped to count mentally but in the end couldn’t be bothered, “…several games you can play. How else are you gonna pass the time?” he smiled and both of them gazed into each other’s eyes.
John, reluctantly, had to stop this because 1) Peter could see everything and he wouldn’t hear the last of it. Grodin had already made that comment one time “Only Dinner?” when he had to do Elizabeth’s taxes and also not forgetting the faculty auction, 2) well, he couldn’t think about a ‘2’ because part of him wanted to go back in but he had to get to class. Oh, yeah… 2) Class, he thought while trying to distract himself.
“John?” Elizabeth’s voice broke him away from his thoughts.
There was a delayed reaction as he thought of a cover. “Oh! I’ll bring cheesecake and come by about four o’ clock to help clean up.”
“You better,” she pointed at him and smiled.
John smirked, closed the door and headed out.
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Elizabeth chuckled at the closed door and then turned to survey her office. She knew that she had work to do but it was something that could wait until her office was cleared up. She sighed contently, due to the visit from John, and then walked to couch. She sat down and leaned her head back on the headrest while closing her eyes and letting herself take in the peace.
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“Don’t think I didn’t see that,” he heard Peter behind him but John continued walking towards the door.
“Kiss my ass,” Doc. Shep said loud enough for Grodin to hear and John heard the dependable secretary chuckle.
When John was in the hallway, he noticed Paul Davis walking towards to him from the left. He groaned when he saw the smirk on Paul’s face and he was beginning to think that Paul Davis, public relations, was stalking him. I wonder if he’s part of the Rumour Mill.
“Paul…” Sheppard nodded to the man as he passed.
“Doctor,” Davis nodded back and entered Doctor Weir’s office. “Ah, Peter! How’s it going?” John heard the joyful greeting from Davis before the door closed.
Sheppard then remembered something. He quickly opened the door and ducked his head in. “Oh, Grodin. Oscar needs a pen.”
Simultaneously, Grodin looked up and Davis’ head turned to face John. Sheppard saw the bemused face on Grodin and he used his head and eyes to indicated Elizabeth’s door. Peter looked at her door and then back again to Sheppard finally with realisation on his face. He nodded in understanding and John closed the door.
“Crap!” John muttered as he realised he hadn’t gotten the work sheets for his class. He bolted to his office door reluctant to face what was in his office.
__________________________________________________________
Elizabeth heard a knock and then the sound of the door opening. She turned her head to the left and peeked through her left eye. She saw Paul Davis scanning her office and then finally spotting her. On seeing her, he smiled apologetically.
Or not, she mentally groaned.